Born in New Brunswick, New Jersey, 11 April 1977, Geoff Geer is a London-based composer, songwriter, music theorist, producer, performer and educator with 30+ years' experience and 70+ recordings. His work spans experimental and contemporary classical music, electroacoustic composition, rock, songwriting and hybrid forms.
His practice bridges composition, songwriting and production, exploring how harmony, texture, timbre and studio processes shape narrative. He develops hybrid works combining instrumental writing with acousmatic and concrete sound, with particular interests in ekphrasis, liminality and transformation between media.
Geer holds a PhD in Music Composition from Oxford Brookes University (2023), Merging 20th Century Art Music and Pre-recorded Sound: 17 Pieces. His research explores mediation, perception and the relationship between fixed media and live performance, including Diegetic Possibilities in Orchestra and Tape Music, Beyond Synchronisation, Logarithmic Dynamic Tonality and the SIR-5 framework. His ekphrasis research culminated in Mirror Beyond (2024) for string quintet.
Representative works include Tadvanalila, Part II, Mirror Beyond, Like the Night, A Desolate Market, The Broken Oracle, Part II, Demon Sands, God Realm (Deva), Part 1 and Human Realm (Manu?ya), Part 2. Like the Night originated as a rock song before being reimagined for string quartet.
An important formative influence was Pandit Chandrakant Kapileshwari, with whom Geer studied Indian classical vocal music. He received three scholarships to Berklee College of Music in 1995-96. His wider musical development includes contemporary, experimental, acousmatic, folk, rock and popular music, including work with Iain McKinna and Lawrie MacMillan, and study with Paul Whitty and Ray Lee.
His songwriting has received recognition in the UK Songwriting Contest, including finalist recognition for Fields (Fields Roll) and fourteen semi-finalist entries. His work has featured on Barron's Wordfest!, Singapore radio and television, and UK radio.
Geer was a Guest Lecturer in MA Music at Oxford Brookes University (2019-2020) and a Music Lecturer and L2 Lead at Southwark College (2025). He holds a PGCE in Further Education from University College London.
Based in London, Geer continues to work across composition, songwriting, production, performance and research. His practice is fundamentally concerned with transformation: how recorded sound can become instrumental gesture, how songs can become chamber works, and how musical identity can persist while its medium and syntax change.
Geoff has worked with Iain McKinna (Offbeat Scotland), Lawrie MacMillan (Stiltskin), Tony Looby (The Skatalites and Friends), Jonty Harrison, Niall Muir (Mouth Music), Andrew Nicholls (Sade), the Kalamandir Orchestra, Heather Burnett-Rose (Mike Oldfield), Paul McKinna, Mihalis Kalkanis, Cecilia Garcia (Argentina National Orchestra), Ana Topalovic (Sony), Marko Otmacic (Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra), the Anglia Chamber Choir, Oxford Improvisers, Steve Moore, Callanish, The Dagmars, Corey Nonis (Heritage), Nick White, Agung Mountain, Auld Reekie Rocks, Know, and artists Nele Zirnite, Alissar McCreary, Blanca Rodriguez Beltran, and Katie Taylor.
He studied with Chandrakant Kapileshwari of the Kirana gharana lineage, Paul Whitty (student of Michael Finnissy), Ray Lee, Paul Dibley, Patrick Farmer (student of Michael Pisaro), Kevin Flanagan (Led Zeppelin, Roger Waters, arranger Jools Holland Show), Paul Rhys, John Banks (Club Inégales with Peter Wiegold), Alexandra Wilson, Julio d'Escrivan, Phil Brooke, Neil Murphy, Alex Abisheganaden, Robert Luse, Abigail Aronson (Berklee), and Steve Wark (Berklee).
His research advances instrumental-electroacoustic integration, focusing on pitch, timbre, and perception. This includes iTet for Sampled Piano (1200-TET), Logarithmic Dynamic Tonality, Ekphrastic Translation, the SIR-5 model, and compositional methods integrating linguistic syntax into musical structure.
Alongside his creative and academic work, Geoff had more than seven years' experience in hospitality, kitchen operations, grounds maintenance and customer service. Roles included Plate Washer at Brasenose College, University of Oxford (2023-2024), and Kitchen Porter with Compass Group, supporting Morgan Stanley (2025-2026). This work strengthened his organisation, reliability, teamwork and communication while he continued composing, researching and teaching.